“I have learned that no matter what the circumstances might be, that I just need to be myself and to never change my values and/or beliefs for anything or anyone.” This is the lesson that Emilye Hurt has taken from her high school experience and will take with her into adulthood. You probably know Emilye as the smiling cheerleader cheering on the McCracken County Mustangs, but there is so much more to her. Emilye is a very smart, sweet, and caring individual. She loves spending time with her friends and family, and volunteering at different charities in our community. She has done community service for places/events such as, Special Olympics, Merryman House, American Red Cross, Relay for Life, and March of Dimes.

Emilye juggles a lot in her day to day life. She balances work, school, social life, cheerleading, volunteering, church, and many other activities with such grace. In her school life alone, she is involved in, All-Girl Cheer, WKCTC Middle College, Campus Ministries, and she is on the Student Council for WKCTC Middle College. Her high school experience has been one that she will never forget. And she has had wonderful teachers and other role models in her life who have impacted her along the way. But when asked who her favorite teacher she has ever had and why, she answered, “Mrs. Carter because she made me realize that being myself will always be enough.” This is a lesson she may have learned in high school, but it will definitely stay with her for the rest of her life.

While you are just starting life in high school, it can feel as if it will never end. But once your senior year hits, it feels as if the four years flew by in the blink of an eye. You can spend your whole experience wishing it away, but when it’s gone, you wish that it would go back to the way it was. That is why if Emilye could tell her Freshman self any one piece of advice, she would say, “Spend more time enjoying and loving high school, rather than wishing it all away. It really will be gone faster than you know it.” A typical weekend for Emilye looks like this, “I am normally cheering for the McCracken County Mustangs on Friday, on Saturdays I am usually at home watching Alabama football with my friends and family, and on Sundays I am at church praising God for all the blessings He has given me.”

Emilye has done a very good job finding herself through high school and finding her place in the world. And she has done so with the support and love of her close friends and family. Because as is told in the song Emilye feels describes her high school experience, “We’re All in This Together” from High School Musical. “Everyone is special in their own way, we make each other strong.”